Patriots-Bills Week 4 Predictions: Who Remains Unbeaten After Clash In Buffalo?
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots are 3-0. The Bills are 3-0. It's going to be one wild scene in Buffalo this weekend.
Both defenses are playing great to start the season. The New England offense has made things look easy against their competition, and the Bills offense has been opportunistic. However, neither team has played anyone good just yet, with the combined record of their opponents a mere 1-17.
On Sunday, both will finally face a worthy adversary. The Patriots will look to remind the Bills of their dominance in the AFC East, while the Bills are looking to let the Pats know they mean business this season. Granted, it's only Week 4 and nothing will be won on Sunday, but it should give us a clearer picture of what these two teams actually are at this early venture of the season.
Here's how the WBZ-TV and CBS Boston sports team sees Sunday's game playing out:
Steve Burton, WBZ-TV
Even though the Patriots are on the road, they are still seven-point favorites over the 3-0 Buffalo Bills. You can understand why.
The Pats defense hasn't given up a touchdown yet, and the sack machine is a full go. New England has a dozen sacks in the last two games alone.
The Pats have won five in a row against the Bills, and Sunday would make it six. Yes, Julian Edelman is hurting. But the Patriots still have enough weapons on both sides of the ball to hand the Bills their first loss of the season.
Patriots 24, Bills 7
Dan Roche, WBZ-TV
This is a fun early season test for the Patriots. Bills Mafia will be fired up for this one as it's the first time they've been 3-0 since 2011. These games usually go like this: Pats jump out to a 2-3 touchdown lead, Bills come storming back, but then the Pats pull away late.
Patriots 31, Bills 14
Levan Reid, WBZ-TV
This will turn out to be an interesting game for both teams. The Bills are not saying this publicly, but this is a measuring stick game. And the Pats are not saying it, but they would like to make sure little brother still remains under their thumb.
Both defenses are very good, so this game will come down to the offenses. With Tom Brady at the helm, the Pats have to feel good. Expect a strong dose of Brandon Bolden and Rex Burkhead to start the game and Brady to Josh Gordon and Phillip Dorsett to end the game.
Patriots 28, Bills 10
Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston
The 3-0 Bills are off to an impressive start, showing early signs that they may actually put up a fight in the AFC East. This shouldn't be the usual casual stroll into Orchard Park for the Patriots.
That being said, the Patriots should still win on Sunday. It won't be the blowout that we've become used to this season, since the Bills actually have a legit defense with a solid secondary. Tom Brady may have some trouble, especially if Julian Edelman is hobbled. That still shouldn't be an issue, since the New England defense will keep on rolling against an improved -- but still fairly inept -- Buffalo offense. Force Josh Allen into making turnovers, and the Pats will be 4-0 by early Sunday evening.
Patriots 24, Bills 13
Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
Aw, what the heck. They're going to lose eventually, right? So why not this week?
In a way, Sunday could be this year's version of last year's trip to Jacksonville. The home team befuddled Tom Brady and Co. with a stifling defense and did enough to earn a win in what was that team's Super Bowl. If the Bills beat the Patriots this Sunday to improve to 4-0 and claim a lead in the AFC East? That would be like the Bills winning 11 Super Bowls at once. (The Bills haven't won a playoff game since 1995. Those folks need this.)
The Patriots always drop a game within the division, and this one appears to be the likeliest candidate. Why not, people?
Bills 16, Patriots 10
Tune in to Sunday's Patriots-Bills clash on WBZ-TV — the flagship station of the New England Patriots. Coverage begins Friday night at 7 p.m. with Patriots All Access, and kicks off Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. with Patriots GameDay. The Patriots and Bills kick off at 1 p.m. and after the game, switch over to TV38 for full reaction and analysis on Patriots 5th Quarter!